The US, Japan, New Zealand and Australia shared concerns a security pact signed by China and the Solomon Islands, which could increase China's influence on one of the Pacific Islands closest to Australia.

China has maintained a "strategic partnership" with Ukraine for years, but as Beijing and Moscow deepen ties amid the ongoing war, Kyiv is wondering what this partnership is worth.

This week, tensions between the US and China spiked further after an alleged spy balloon was shot down by Washington. Beijing later said it would firmly defend its interests after President Joe Biden vowed to protect the sovereignty of the United States. China continues to insist the balloon was for civilian purposes and had veered off course.

Missile strikes have hit several cities across Ukraine as Russia renews its assault on civilian infrastructure. Ukraine's top general says the missiles crossed into Romanian and Moldovan airspace.

A survey has found that many people in Southeast Asia prefer to engage with the EU amid US-China rivalry in the region. Cambodians particularly viewed the bloc favorably — Malaysians and Indonesians not so much.

In November 2022, thousands of young Chinese people took to the streets to protest repeated Covid-19 lockdowns, constant PCR tests and to demand greater freedom. The movement was stifled in a few days and authorities abandoned their strict zero-Covid policy. But if China's youth took the risk to voice their anger, it's because their frustration goes well beyond Covid rules. FRANCE 24's Lou Kisiela, Antoine Morel and Yan Chen report.

John Kirby, the coordinator for strategic communications at the National Security Council in the White House, met DW correspondent Carolina Chimoy for a talk about what kind of impact the recently downed spy balloon could have on US-Chinese relations.

EU leaders want to prevent migrants from seeking asylum in another country in the bloc if they were already rejected in one. But they are not in agreement on building a wall on the EU's external borders.

The European Commission has revised its economic forecasts upwards slightly, predicting growth of almost 1% in the bloc for 2023. Inflation is expected to slow but remain high, a little more so outside the eurozone.

Manila filed a diplomatic protest against Beijing after an incident in the South China Sea. The US warned that it would defend its ally if Filipino forces were attacked.

The European Parliament has given a green light to a plan to halt sales of petrol and disel cars from 2035. It's a crucial part of the bloc's plan to become a "climate neutral" economy by 2050. Also in the show - US inflation remains hotter than expected, putting pressure on Federal Reserve policymakers, and Air India announces a record-breaking deal for 470 planes from Airbus and Boeing.

The European Commission has proposed a drop of 90% in emissions in heavy vehicles by 2040 as compared to 2019. From 2030, new city buses should be zero-emission vehicles.